Construction Site Waste Segregation: Why It Matters for Compliance and Efficiency

The construction industry produces waste—mountains of it. As old materials are stripped out of buildings or structures are demolished, those waste materials are removed from the site to make way for new construction.

But where you remove your construction waste has a major impact on the environment. And how you remove it can affect your waste disposal costs and overall project timelines.

Don’t throw time and money into the skip along with your demolition waste! Read on for a full understanding of how your construction waste management affects project compliance and efficiency, and how you can improve both with an airtight site waste management plan (SWMP).

How waste management practices affect compliance

In England, construction projects estimated to cost over £300,000 legally require a site waste management plan. SWMPs help reduce the amount of waste that’s tossed into landfills, and they help construction companies manage hazardous waste, too.

A comprehensive SWMP outlines:

• Who’s responsible for the construction waste disposal
• What types of construction waste will be produced
• How the construction project will handle waste (whether it’ll be reduced, reused, recycled, or placed in a landfill)
• Which contractors the construction company will use for waste management
• How the company will measure the waste produced on their construction sites

Ignoring the SWMP mandate will cost you dearly. Fines can be as high as £50,000 for noncompliance, and your crew could be fined £300 just for failing to supply a copy of the SWMP on the spot.

This guide on writing your own SWMP will help demystify the process, but if you’re really stuck, The Waste Group can help. Talk to a team member about how we help contractors meet their SWMP obligations.

Waste categories

As part of the SWMP documentation, you’ll be asked to categorise your waste according to the waste classification code. The code is sometimes called the List of Waste (LOW) or European Waste Catalogue (EWC), and it outlines the most common types of construction and excavation waste.

This code helps you document:

• Whether your waste is hazardous or a persistent organic pollutant (POP)
• The type of premises that produced the waste
• The name of each waste substance
• The process that produced your waste (such as demolition, excavation, etc.)
• The chemical and physical analysis of the waste
• Any special requirements related to the waste (especially in the case of hazardous waste)

Mixing hazardous with non-hazardous waste is illegal—you should have separate hazardous waste containers for POPs or other dangerous substances.

Even mixing different types of non-hazardous waste can cause time-costly confusion, as each type has its own unique code and has to be handled differently. But don’t worry—we’ll show you how to keep it all straight and sorted properly.

Segregation: The key to efficient, low-waste construction

Separating your waste types from the beginning of your project helps you streamline your waste management practices. With a plan in place for each material your crew will handle upfront, they’ll spend less time making waste-related decisions, boosting overall project efficiency.

Classifying and organising your construction waste also makes your site tidier and keeps you on the right side of the Environmental Protection Act. Plus, when properly sorted, you’ll send less recyclable waste to the landfill. This way, you’ll save money by skipping the sky-high landfill fees in favour of lower recycling fees and reusing materials where possible.

Collect recyclable materials separately

Proper waste segregation starts with understanding the waste you’ve generated and how you can dispose of it. Concrete, metal, wood, and plastics can all be recycled, saving money on landfill costs. It’s a smart idea to begin your project with separate skips or storage for each of those materials. That way, it’s easier to recycle them when you’re ready.

Call in the specialists for hazardous substances

Hazardous materials require special treatment, not only for the safety of your crew but in accordance with the law. A reputable waste management company will take care of dangerous substances for you, and supply you with a cert showing you’ve met your responsible disposal duties.

Tips for on-site waste segregation

Reducing construction waste should always be your goal on site. It’s the responsible thing to do, and it makes your site more efficient. When our contractor clients ask for help with waste segregation, we always recommend these tips:

• Set up designated bins or skips for each type of waste
• Clearly label the waste containers so everyone knows what’s inside
• Train your crew on proper disposal practises, and make sure they know the location of every type of bin

Finally, we recommend you talk to The Waste Group today about creating a SWMP and setting up site segregation. We’re experts at both, and we’re here to help you build a more sustainable future.